5 reasons to love (or at least tolerate?) Walmart

Okay, I know how some of you out there feel about Walmart. It's too busy, parking is a nightmare, the lines are too long, it's dirty, they have sweatshops in China, etc. etc. etc. I do not have any control over these things, nor do I make any excuses for them. They are bad.

However, I have a few things to say in defense of Walmart. In fact, I have to admit that despite all of the things mentioned above, I am rather fond of Walmart. Honestly, if it weren't for Walmart and its low prices, I don't know how my family could afford to buy groceries every week without spending hours clipping coupons or driving all over town to chase the meat and produce sales.

Besides Walmart's cheap prices, here are a few other things I've come to love about it:

1. Their slogan, "Save money. Live better." Walmart rolled out this new slogan in September 2007, its first new one in 19 years, and I love it for its simplicity and for the way that it echoes my own motto: "Living rich doesn't have to be expensive." Todd Sullivan, a contributor to Seeking Alpha, a stock market analysis website, says, "What they have done is turned a logical ad campaign that said 'shop here because it makes sense to save money' into an emotional one. Now the message is 'shop here so you can have more fun and do more with your kids'" (i.e. with the money you save).
   
   
2. Their low prices.
   I know I mentioned this already, but it bears repeating. Of all the places I shop, Walmart is consistently cheaper in the things I purchase most often (groceries, paper products, and toiletries). And again, this is without coupons. When I do have coupons to use, that makes it even more inexpensive.
   
   
3. Their selection and array of products.
   I can get everything in one place, and this is as good as gold for a busy mom. If I wanted to, I could get curtains, toilet paper, and lettuce all in one shopping trip.
   
   
4. Their "Site to Store" feature.
   With Walmart's Site to Store feature, you can order practically anything from their website (which includes thousands of items not available in stores) and have it shipped to a store near you for free. This works especially well if you want to avoid long checkout lines. The Site to Store pickup area is usually located at the back of the store and I've yet to see a line there.
   
   
5. Their efforts to provide environmentally- and health-conscious options.
   More and more I see organic items springing up on Walmart's shelves. Of course, this seems to be true everywhere right now, especially with it being so trendy to be green and sustainable. But kudos to Walmart for at least attempting to provide more options for their customers, including their recent decision to use only cows not treated with rbST for their Great Value milk (in both Walmart and Sam's Club).
   

All right, I think I'll stop there before I come off as some kind of crazy Walmart-lover. While I appreciate Walmart for the things mentioned above, I do recognize the hazards presented by shopping there. So I will conclude with my tips for making a trip to Walmart the best experience possible:

1. Plan the time of your visit very carefully. I go on Friday mornings, when it is not too busy, there are virtually no lines, and the shelves have just been stocked. I do not even attempt to go within a five-mile radius of Walmart on the weekends. If you go on the weekend, nothing you or I love about Walmart will be worth the torture of the parking lot.
   
2. Make a list and stick to it. If you end up buying a lot of stuff that's not on your list, then the low prices won't make much of a difference to you.
   
3. Plan a route and stick to it (e.g. first health & beauty, then home improvement, then baby, and finally grocery). If you deviate from your route, you are likely to deviate from your list.

Save money. Live better. Yes indeed.